Western Montana's Glacier Country: Stunningly Breathtaking Scenery

With more than 1 million acres, the park is stunning, dramatic and breathtaking with terrain that includes rolling foothills, a celestial summit, wildflower-filled meadows and 122-meter waterfalls. While Glacier National Park has one of the largest intact ecosystems in the lower 48 states, it’s easy for visitors to explore by road, trail or boat. The 80-kilometer Going-to-the-Sun Road, an engineering marvel and National Historic Landmark, is one of the most scenic drives in the nation. It travels through the heart of the park, cresting the Continental Divide at Logan Pass. The park is also home to historic lodges, backcountry chalets, abundant outdoor recreation and more than 1,127 kilometers of hiking trails.

Located outside the park’s eastern boundary, in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains, is the Blackfeet Nation. The largest Indian reservation in Montana, the Blackfeet Nation is home to more than 8,000 members of the Blackfeet Tribe. To learn more about the tribe, visitors can attend North American Indian Days, an annual celebration in July that includes traditional and fancy dancing, powwows, traditional games and a rodeo. Sun Tours offers interpretive tours of Glacier National Park from the perspective of the Blackfeet Tribe.

Located in northwest Montana between Missoula and Kalispell is the Flathead Indian Reservation, home of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai tribes. This reservation includes the southern portion of Flathead Lake, the National Bison Range and the Mission Mountains Wilderness Complex.

The outdoor recreation that can be found here year-round ranges from skiing at a world-class ski resort to casting a line on one of the area’s blue-ribbon trout streams. In Montana, recreation is often experienced against a backdrop of stunning views that include crystal-clear lakes, snow-capped mountain peaks and rushing waterfalls.

While scenery and outdoor recreation take center stage in western Montana, Glacier Country has plenty of Western charm in the form of small towns, a lively arts and culture scene, working ranches and a hearty brewery industry.

And with wide expanses of sweeping plains and mountain valleys, Montana is a destination that’s ready to be explored.